The twenty-four hours of [Life Swap] were almost up. Shi Tianwu's consciousness was about to leave Lu Bian's body.
"Bro, I never knew you could make straw sandals~!"
Shi Tianwu had gathered some wild grass and vines and woven a few pairs of crude sandals for Lu Bian.
He still had a long way to go along the Desolate Road through the mountains. He had no idea how long it would take to find people, so Shi Tianwu had woven five pairs of sandals for Lu Bian to use as spares.
He didn't answer Lu Bian's question about why he, Shi Tianwu, knew how to weave straw sandals.
Truthfully, he didn't know how.
He'd just come up with the idea on the spot.
"They won't be comfortable to wear, but there's nothing we can do about that. They're just to protect your feet," Shi Tianwu explained.
"Time's up. I'm off."
"Okay. See you in the Chat Group."
A dizzy feeling came over Lu Bian, then his whole body relaxed. His body was completely his own again.
"..."
The moonlight wasn't as bright as it had been the night before, and his body felt a little tired. Lu Bian decided to rest for the night beside the Desolate Road.
He wouldn't travel at night.
Edward Newgate's video call had never ended. The banquet he'd hosted had been over for a while, and his crew were all either dead drunk or stuffed full. They were resting now.
Whitebeard leaned against a rock, gazing at the stars on his side.
"Big bro, see anything?"
Lu Bian and Whitebeard were both lying on their backs, resting, and had started chatting again.
"No."
"I'm just looking," Whitebeard replied.
"The scenery where you are is much better than where I am."
"I've been looking at this sea for decades. I'm sick of it."
"Really?"
"I've never even been to the seaside, let alone out to sea," Lu Bian said.
"You've never seen the ocean?" Whitebeard was surprised, but then he remembered that Lu Bian came from another world. It made sense, after all.
"In my world, there's barely any land. The islands are scattered across the boundless ocean like crumbs."
"Land is incredibly precious."
"The mountains where you are must have formed on a vast expanse of land."
"That's true."
"Then let's keep the video call open. I'll show you more of the scenery in my world, big bro."
"Gurarara! Sounds good."
The mountain wilderness where Lu Bian was really was a sight Edward Newgate had never seen before.
He'd never seen the wild grass at their feet, and even the trees beside them were unfamiliar.
Towering mountains, lush plants, birds in flight, insects chirping, wind sweeping clouds along—Whitebeard's eyes held a trace of envy.
What wonderful land...
The next day, as soon as the sun rose, Lu Bian set out.
A faint mist hung over the Desolate Road winding through the mountains.
Lu Bian found a stick and used it to beat the wild grass and bushes a meter or two ahead of him as he went, scaring off any snakes and insects in advance.
If he got bitten by a venomous snake, there'd be no one to save him.
Whitebeard woke up and, as usual, propped his chin on his hand as he watched Lu Bian walking in the video call.
In the eyes of his sons aboard the ship, Whitebeard was staring off into the sea again.
Edward Newgate was actually a fairly quiet person. For a good part of each day aboard the ship, he would gaze silently into the distance, listening to the sea breeze. He only reacted when someone spoke to him first.
No one else could see the scenery in Whitebeard's eyes.
[Beep...]
[Son Gohan has joined the Chat Group]
"Huh?"
"What's this?"
As soon as he joined the group, Son Gohan entered the video call.
"Whoa!" Lu Bian stopped in his tracks.
Shi Tianwu had returned to his own body and hadn't opened his video call window. Mr. Bruce Wayne was offline, so at that moment only Lu Bian and Edward Newgate's video call windows were showing.
Suddenly, three video feeds appeared in a triangular arrangement before Lu Bian and Whitebeard.
The newly joined Son Gohan appeared before Lu Bian and Pops, and Gohan could see the two of them as well.
"Wow! That's amazing~!" Son Gohan exclaimed.
"It's a little kid!" Whitebeard said in surprise.
"H-hello..." Son Gohan greeted them shyly.
"Huh? For real?" Lu Bian was surprised too.
Lu Bian tapped Son Gohan's profile picture and checked his age.
"Hello, little Gohan."
"You're seven this year, right?" Lu Bian asked.
"Huh? How did you know, big brother?" little Gohan asked.
"The group has member profiles. Just focus on your profile picture and you can view the information."
"Really...!!"
Smart little Gohan understood as soon as Lu Bian explained.
Date of birth: Age 757
Birthday: May 8
Age: 7
"Gohan, is it okay if I call you that?" Lu Bian asked.
"Yeah, that's fine." Son Gohan nodded.
"You already know this, right? The members of our Chat Group are all from other worlds."
"Mm-hm, I know." Little Gohan nodded.
"Are you studying right now? At home?"
"Mm! My teacher gives me lessons on my home computer. It feels kind of like this Chat Group," Gohan answered honestly.
"Oh, are you a good boy who loves studying?" Pops smiled kindly.
Seeing little Gohan's bowl-cut hairstyle in the video call, Lu Bian thought of all sorts of things.
He didn't know Edward Newgate very well. He hadn't watched much of One Piece, but he'd watched the Dragon Ball manga and anime more times than he could count.
Just from seeing Son Gohan's hairstyle and age, he could deduce a lot.
"Gohan, do you want to grow up to be a scholar?" Lu Bian asked.
"Yes."
--Wow, people from other worlds really are amazing!
--He knew what I was thinking after only just meeting me.
Little Son Gohan lowered his head slightly, marveling innocently to himself.
"Is your dad home?" Lu Bian asked.
"Do I need a guardian to keep chatting with you?" Son Gohan asked nervously.
"No, that's not it. I was just a little curious."
"If your dad's there, I'll be careful about what I say," Lu Bian explained.
"Gurarara!!!"
Whitebeard burst out laughing.
He understood all too well, as a father, the importance of being careful about how you influenced a child.
But Lu Bian hadn't actually meant what Whitebeard thought he meant.
"My dad isn't home, but Mom is," Son Gohan answered.
"Oh, all right."
"Gohan, are you going to study now?" Lu Bian asked.
"It's my break right now. I just finished my online class."
Before you continue